Children of Heaven

On one of our recent shopping sprees with our nephew, we landed up debating whether to buy Nike shoes or Reebok shoes for him. The arguments were strong for both brands:

Nike:

1. We were in the Nike store when the argument was taking place
2. We were nearly running out of energy after a tiring day managing three kids and 4 adults ;)
3. Cost-wise, we got a good deal.

Reebok:

1. One of his brat friends, whose name I can't even remember, bought Reebok shoes when he came back from US after a holiday. So, it was a major standard to be measured against.

Fullstop. Period.

So, after haggling for what seemed like hours, we convinced him to buy Nike and set a standard of his own (SIGH!) Ultimately, he settled for a pair of football shoes (since, he had agreed to buying Nike, he could not agree to buying the model we suggested, could he?!) So, for the times when he might play soccer, shoes were purchased!

I could not help relating to the times we grew up in, when Nike and Reebok were names only dreamt of! My husband used to wear slippers to School - most boys did. When it comes to Athletics or running races, slippers could be extremely uncomfortable, and were prone to slipping off one's feet. So, the brazen lads would run barefeet without a second thought to gravel or the coarse mud. One problem remained to be coped with. Most children were poor - and by the time you came back from the race to claim your slippers, they were stolen! In order to solve this - he used to slip the slippers on the palm of his hands, and run as fast as his legs would carry him, and as gracefully as slippers around his palm would allow him to!

When you visualize this, it seems hilarious! But alas, such is the state of affairs in most areas of the world. No luxury to think about shoes for every occasion or comfort! In a way, the capitalist economy has dampened the thrill of getting new things for our children - I can still remember the heart soaring when we used to get new things as children!

PS: I've borrowed the title from the movie (but this seemed an apt title!)